| Pick |
Team |
Player |
Position |
College |
|---|
| 1. | Carolina Panthers | Cam Newton | QB | Auburn |
Curt: no shock here. He has been the pick for weeks. How fast he learns will be the difference.
Ben: Personally I hate this pick if I'm a Panthers fan. I understand it, but it makes a joke of their first pick last year |
| 2. | Denver Broncos | Von Miller | OLB | Texas A&M |
Curt: Denver takes the higher risk/reward guy. I'll be very interested to see how he does in a 4-3. Great player.
Ben: No doubt but I question picking him over Dareus. If they were sticking with the 3-4 it makes great sense. Dumervil and Miller at OLB would be frightening. Not sure how Miller will go in a 4-3 in the pros. |
| 3. | Buffalo Bills | Marcell Dareus | DE | Alabama |
Curt: Love this pick. He is going to be a load in the middle. This team still needs a QB but their defense is much better today.
Ben: Great pick for Buffalo. They need help all over and Dareus is the best guy at their need positions left. |
| 4. | Cincinnati Bengals | A.J. Green | WR | Georgia |
Curt: While I think Julio Jones is a better all around player, this pick makes perfect sense. Now who will throw him the football?
Ben: Typical Bengals pick. Outlandishly talented but with some character questions. Seems like a nice fit and might spell the end for Ochocinco. |
| 5. | Arizona Cardinals | Patrick Peterson | CB | LSU |
| Curt: Peterson is the best all round player in the draft and a no brainer. If you want a guy with almost no flaws this is the player. |
| 6. | Atlanta Falcons (from Cleveland) | Julio Jones | WR | Alabama |
| Curt: I love him as a player but atlanta way over paid. They will never get back the return on this investment. |
| 7. | San Francisco 49ers | Aldon Smith | DE | Missouri |
Curt: I feel like the Niners drafted the wrong Tiger. But on the bright side this puts Andrew Luck in play for them already.
Ben:Long term this could turn out to be the best pick for them. Smith's probably a while off really contributing, but could be great in time and yeah, the #1 overall in 2012 isn't out of the question! |
| 8. | Tennessee Titans | Jake Locker | QB | Washington |
Curt: Hard to see how Locker goes ahead of Gabbert but the position makes perfect sense for Tennessee. Titans better hope Locker can improve that accuracy, and quickly.
Ben:Yeah I'm kind of baffled by this one too. Locker's going to need a lot of work and really shouldn't see the field for a couple of years. Can't argue with need though. |
| 9. | Dallas Cowboys | Tyron Smith | OT | USC |
| Curt: Dallas is going to look back in five years and know they drafted a good player, but passed on better ones. |
| 10. | Jacksonville Jaguars (from Washington) | Blaine Gabbert | QB | Missouri |
Curt: When he started to slide I figured someone would go up after him.
Ben: That's not a bad situation to land in for Gabbert. Nice to see the Jags do something flashy in the draft after the safe pick on Alualu last year. |
| 11. | Houston Texans | J.J. Watt | DE | Wisconsin |
Curt: Love him as a player but I am not sure he can impact a team enough to warrant a pick this high.
Ben: I'm a huge Watt fan, he's incredibly versatile which I think helps him make this pick more worthwhile, but usually I'd be against a five technique going this high. |
| 12. | Minnesota Vikings | Christian Ponder | QB | Florida State |
| Curt: I figured he's go early in the first, but on the need factor not on the talent factor. Total reach pick here and not a pick I would make. |
| 13. | Detroit Lions | Nick Fairley | DT | Auburn |
| Curt: Probably not the greatest position of need, but man, pairing Fairley up with Suh is going to make for a devastating interior defensive line. |
| 14. | St Louis Rams | Robert Quinn | DE | North Carolina |
| Curt: I figured that the Rams would look for a rush end, but I wasn't sure if it would be Quinn or Bowers. Quinn is a nice player, but I am not so excited if I am Rams fan. |
| 15. | Miami Dolphins | Mike Pouncey | C | Florida |
| Curt: Don't like this pick at all. He's not his brother and he doesn't make this team much better. Bad pick, IMO. Dolphins need so much help and you don't take a Center here. |
| 16. | Washington Redskins (from Jacksonville) | Ryan Kerrigan | DE | Purdue |
| Curt: Really? I mean he's a good player, and he and Brian Orakpo will make for a nice combo, but I have to shake my head at at team that needs so much adding a guy who might not even start this year. |
| 17. | New England Patriots (from Oakland) | Nate Solder | OT | Colorado |
| Curt: I don't often say that the Pats miss on a pick, but even though I think Solder is a nice player, he's not as good as many other players on the board. Another good player drafted ahead of some great ones. |
| 18. | San Diego Chargers | Corey Liuget | DT | Illinois |
Curt: I like him as a player. I don't like him as much as Cameron Jordan, but my bigger concern is where he'll play in the Charger defense.
Ben: Am wondering if this is possibly a trade in principle with some other team. I'm not 100% sure how well Liuget fits in San Diego's 3-4 base? |
| 19. | New York Giants | Prince Amukamara | CB | Nebraska |
| Curt: Nice pick for the Giants. They needed an offensive lineman, and still do, but this is a great value pick here. Now he can show if he really loves football or not, because the New York fans will rip him apart if he doesn't. |
| 20. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Adrian Clayborn | DE | Iowa |
| Curt: I am happy that he got drafted this high. He was so unstoppable two years ago. I wanted to get him into my mock, but there were so many concerns. And Cameron Jordan keeps on falling. Bowers too. |
| 21. | Cleveland Browns (from Kansas City) | Phil Taylor | DT | Baylor |
| Curt: Someone in there must have blown some smoke into Cleveland to go up and get a nose tackle. Good player, and in time could be a great nose. Pure zero technique. |
| 22. | Indianapolis Colts | Anthony Castonzo | OT | Boston College |
| Curt: This pick makes perfect sense for the Colts. I don't think Castanzo is a better player than Gabe Carimi, but he'll be a nice fit in Indy. |
| 23. | Philadelphia Eagles | Danny Watkins | OG | Baylor |
Curt: I am opposed to drafting any player who will be a 27 year old rookie in round 1. He's a good football player, but in football years he's an old man.
Ben: They should get a handful of really good years out of Watkins. Amusing that after that bout of patriotic flag waving the Commish introduces a Canadian! |
| 24. | New Orleans Saints | Cameron Jordan | DT | California |
| Curt: I would have guessed this guy would have been long gone by now. More of a BPA pick than need, but he's another guy I have to wonder where exactly he'll get his reps on that line. |
| 25. | Seattle Seahawks | James Carpenter | OT | Alabama |
Curt: First WTF pick. The Seahawks FO are dumb. Dumb, dumb dumb.
Ben: I think there's been a couple of WTF picks already but yeah, this one seems to fit the bill too. |
| 26. | Kansas City Chiefs (from Atlanta via Cleveland) | Jonathan Baldwin | WR | Pittsburgh |
Curt: Kind of a head scratcher even though I had him in the first round. They keep drafting offensive players, their offense should be better. Except their line isn't very good. Should have went oline.
Ben: I'm doubly surprised. I thought for sure they'd love Gabe Carimi, even before the trade down. I'm also surprised Ossie Newsome appears to have messed up? |
| 27. | Baltimore Ravens (failed to pick @26) | Jimmy Smith | CB | Colorado |
| Curt: This guy was born to be a Raven. Super talented, super confident and going to a great organization. Should have been drafted many picks ago. I said months ago, he was the best press corner in the draft. |
| 28. | New Orleans Saints (from New England) | Mark Ingram | RB | Alabama |
| Curt: One of my favorite players in the draft. Went to a great team where he's going to have big lanes to run through. Could be dominant, but also shows what a wasted pick Reggie Bush really was. |
| 29. | Chicago Bears | Gabe Carimi | OT | Wisconsin |
| Curt: Love him. What a steal here for the Bears. Absolute mauler and has the best resume' in the draft. Will anchor that Bears line for a decade. |
| 30. | New York Jets | Muhammad Wilkerson | DT | Temple |
| Curt: More of an effort player than a high talent guy. Not sure he's going to help with the pass rush, but he'll be a good run stuffer for the Jets and might help free up the linebackers. |
| 31. | Pittsburgh Steelers | Cameron Heyward | DE | Ohio State |
Curt: When you have spots that are big time needs, you don't reach for depth. There are great tackles and corners on the board. Did Colbert watch the Super Bowl?
Ben: I'm not so unhappy about that. Aaron Smith may not be back, Kiesel is old too. |
| 32. | Green Bay Packers | Derek Sherrod | OT | Mississippi State |
| Curt: Real nice player. He's probably going to end up playing on the right side, because he's pretty big but in a draft where the tackle talent falls off the cliff, the Packers got the last of the really good ones. |
